Valley beat Enniskillen in semi final Junior Cup to meet Ballynahinch 2nds in final at Ravenhill on 28th Dec
The pre-match build up to this local derby Junior Cup semi-final predicted it was going to be a closely contested encounter.
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Enniskillen are unbeaten in Qualifying Two while Clogher Valley ,after a stuttering start to their Qualifying One campaign,are starting to find some form.
The large crowd which flocked to The Cran were treated to an exhilarating,exciting and skillful match which proved that rugby is alive and well in the west of the Province.
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Enniskillen were quicker to settle.Valley gave away too many penalties,especially at the breakdown,and Nick Finlay to give Skins the lead after nine minutes.The home side began to settle down and gain good possession,especially from the set pieces. A lineout drive set up possession for scrum half Bates but a flying boot prevented the pass and Valley had a penalty.Aaron Best converted to level the scores after twenty minutes.
A wayward kick from Skins was gathered by Ally Breen who beat a couple of chasers and broke into the Skins half. Good interplay between backs and forwards led to another penalty but Best could not find the target. The unfortunate Steven Baxter had to leave the field with an eye injury and was replaced by Eugene McKenna.
Valley continued to dominate possession and territory but the Enniskillen defence was superb.On the stroke of half time Valley finally broke through. The forwards set up ball to the right of the posts.Bates sent a long pass to Ally Breen who put Keith Todd clear. He stepped inside the covering defenders and off-loaded in the tackle to Philip Falconer.The experienced centre/prop bundled three tacklers over the line for the decisive try.Best missed the conversion and Valley had a narrow 8 – 3 lead at the break.
Valley continued to dominate territory and possession in the second half but the Skins defence was up to the task.A rare visit into the Valley half resulted in a penalty which Finlay converted to narrow the score to 8 – 6.
Valley were encamped in Skins territory but their resolute defence held out the waves of attacks. The pressure began to tell as Skins gave away a series of penalties.Eventually the impressive Skins number eight Johnston was yellow-carded and Best kicked the penalty to extend the lead to 11 – 6 with just ten minutes on the clock.The remainder of the game was spent in the Skins half.Valley continued to hold on to the ball and Skins simply couldn’t break the stranglehold.
The final whistle heralded another Ravenhill final for Clogher Valley. Their opponents in the Final on Friday December 28th will be Ballynahinch Seconds who defeated Portadown in the other semi-final.
Valley are back in League action on Saturday with the difficult away fixture against League leaders Portadown.
